Ed and I were told we would be PCSing (Permanent Change of Station, it is military for moving) to California in March. We had always known the UK assignment was a three year deal so we were expecting to move in March. However, Ed's leadership were able to send him to SOS (Squadron Officer School) enroute. This is necessary training to qualify for promotion to Major (in a few years) so Ed would have been foolish to turn it down. Ready for the hitch? Ed's class started in January, this meant we had to leave our beloved England two months early! That's two months less of European travel! So we got busy. Ed and I decided to kick off our last minute travels with a road trip through the Peak District, Glasgow, the Scottish Highlands and, finally, St. Andrew's.
St Andrew's is famed as being the birthplace of golf. I'm told it is every golfer's dream to play the Old Course. Ed has been playing since he was seven. Twenty years later he played the Old Course. Of course, not without a little drama. In order to play the Old Course one has to have an established handicap of 24 or better and a certificate from one's home course verifying the player's handicap. In order to establish a handicap one has to play at least 5 games. Ed has been playing the game since he was seven but the game has taken a back seat to our travels. Once he returned to the UK from his deployment, (oh yeah Ed deployed Aug-Nov) he played 5 games in 3 day to establish his handicap at 16 but, didn't get a certificate. So on November 24th he walked up to the Starter at the Old Course and asked if he could join a twosome or threesome without documentation. Luckily for Ed it was the middle of winter and only crazy people play a four hour game, outdoors, in the freezing cold. Ed joined two St. Andrew's students and one of their fathers for a day on the Old Course. Oh yeah, St Andrew's is where the Duke and Duchess of Cambridge went to University. So while he was doing that I was prowling Wills and Kate's old diggs.
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